


no ray of sunlight's ever lost

by drowninginmyworries



Category: Brooklyn Nine-Nine (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Lifeguards, B99 Summer 2020 Fic Exchange, F/M, Fluff, Humor, Jake is an Idiot, TW: throwing up, oops this is like 46 minutes late, tw: near drowning
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-14
Updated: 2020-09-14
Packaged: 2021-03-07 01:40:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,095
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26458858
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/drowninginmyworries/pseuds/drowninginmyworries
Summary: Jake drops his phone over the side of a pier, and naturally, decides he needs to attempt to swim to the bottom of the sea bank to get it back. Of course, it doesn't work out the way he wants it to.
Relationships: Jake Peralta/Amy Santiago
Comments: 9
Kudos: 41





	no ray of sunlight's ever lost

**Author's Note:**

  * For [startofamoment](https://archiveofourown.org/users/startofamoment/gifts).



> Written for the wonderful @startofamoment for this year's summer fic exchange, taking her prompt, "amy's the cute lifeguard who saves jake from drowning at the beach." 
> 
> Erica, I sincerely hope you enjoy this!!! 
> 
> I also have a story to go along with this, but I'll put it in at the end to spare everyone. :)
> 
> Also, if you're sensitive to near-death situations and/or throwing up, both occur in this fic. Please take care of yourselves. <3

“Jake, this is the most idiotic thing I’ve ever heard,” Rosa says, glaring at him. “Even for you.”

Gina nods along with her. 

“It’s bonkers, baby. But I _love_ it,” she says, pulling out her phone and beginning to record as Rosa rolls her eyes. “Now smile for the camera!”

Jake’s not the least bit bothered, shooting them both a huge grin and waving to Gina’s phone before he turns to squint down off the dock and into the ocean depths. 

Half an hour ago, he dropped his phone off the side of the dock while he was shoving an ice cream cone in his mouth. In his haste to try and catch it, he nearly vaulted face-first into the water himself. 

And to add insult to injury, he dropped his ice cream cone in the water, too! He had to salvage _something_ today, even if he had to go out of his way to do it. 

“That phone was expensive! I have to get it back!” Jake insists, stretching and beginning to crack his fingers, neck, and upper back in succession. 

“Jake, it’s been underwater for _half an hour_ ,” Rosa says. 

“Yeah, but the box said it’s water resistant.” 

“Water _resistant_ and water _proof_ don’t mean the same thing, moron.” 

“Potato, potato,” he says, waving Rosa off as she rolls her eyes. “Besides, it’s not even about getting my phone back at this point. It’s about _pride_ , Rosa! It’s about sending a message!”

“What message are you sending? Other than the fact that you’re an idiot?” Rosa asks.

“The fact that I’m _resilient_. That I never give up in the face of adversity! Tell her, Gina!” 

Gina doesn’t even look up from her phone. “Whatever makes you feel better, sweetheart.” 

Jake huffs, but he’s otherwise unperturbed, adjusting his goggles as he hands Rosa his wallet and keys. 

“Whatever, all I’m saying is when I dive in there, grab my phone, and swim back to shore with the skill of an Olympic swimmer, it’ll be you guys that look stupid, not me!”

He doesn’t give either of them the chance to respond, vaulting over the pier and gracelessly toppling into the water. 

About halfway down, it hits him that he didn’t realize just how tall the pier was, so he screams, hitting the sea hard as saltwater fills his mouth. He sinks down a few feet from the force of impact, and when he struggles to hit the surface again he spits out the water, gagging a little bit from the taste. 

Distantly, he thinks he hears Gina laughing at him, but that only fuels his determination. He looks back up at the pier, where he distantly sees Gina holding her phone out and Rosa pinching the bridge of her nose while pointedly not looking at him. 

He dips his head down in the water, squinting his eyes so he can see as far down as he can. At first, he can't make out anything at all. He’s disappointed he made such a show out of it, but then out of the corner of his eye, he spots his obnoxious neon green phone case that Gina loves to hate so much wedged between some rocks. 

He _knew_ it’d come in handy one day!

Jake lifts his head above the water, taking a deep breath and summoning all the same willpower he used all the summers he spent having breath-holding competitions at the public pool in his youth, before submerging himself and swimming down. 

It feels good, at first. The water is cool, and even though he knows the ocean is horrifically polluted, this area around the pier is surprisingly well-kept, with the water crystal-clear beneath the surface. He’s thoroughly enjoying the view until he gets to about ten feet under the surface. His ears pop as he feels an uncomfortable pressure in his head, and for a moment it’s too much. He rises to the surface again with a gasp, gathering himself and breathing a few times before he dips down again, kicking harder and ignoring the burn in his legs. He forces himself further down in the water, even past the point to where his ears start ringing. He’s so close, and he stretches his hand out to brush against the screen. 

Then, with one last mighty kick, he’s propelled forward enough to grab it, grinning hugely even as his lungs ache from the lack of oxygen. He swims upward until he breaks the surface with a deep gasp, holding the phone above his head in victory. 

“I told you!” he shouts, momentarily blinded by the sun and waving his hand in what he hopes is the direction of the pier. “I am _relentless!”_

He tries to keep treading and look around for Rosa and Gina, but a wave sends water rushing above his head again, pulling him under. He was in the middle of sucking in a breath, so the salt water rushes up his nose and down his throat, making him cough beneath the surface and sending bubbles bursting out of him. Through the unpleasant sensation of swallowing a mouthful of seawater, he fights to reach the surface only to be met with another strong wave. 

His chest tightens, lungs protesting, but he manages to propel himself up to take a quick breath as soon as he breaks free. But he’s brought underwater again by a new current. He keeps kicking, reaches the surface and tries to shout for Rosa or Gina, but he can’t do it. The tide is carrying him, and no matter how hard he kicks or tries to propel himself out of the current, he can’t. 

Briefly, his heart seizes in his chest, and he tries with all his might to make his body do what he wants it to do, but he just _can’t_. He paddles and kicks as hard as he can, his limbs burning, but he’s being taken under over and over again. 

The more he fights, the more exhausted he becomes, and the phone he’d tried so desperately to retrieve slips out of his hands under the water, and a cramp rips through his leg as he shouts, inhaling more water. 

Then, he starts to sink, his pulse in overdrive as his mind races to think of a way for him to get himself out of this situation, but as he panics, he draws a blank. 

Weakly, he lifts one of his hands above the surface, waving it as high as he can as the water begins to take him under as he grows more and more lightheaded. He struggles to move his arms and legs to keep him afloat, but he realizes he’s simply too exhausted to move. His body straight-up _doesn’t work_ , and terror floods his veins as his lungs scream for oxygen. Black spots begin to pop up in his vision at an alarming rate as his pulse roars in his ears. 

He begins to feel himself slipping away far too quickly as he sinks, the blackness beginning to overwhelm him. 

Then, right as he’s on the precipice of losing consciousness, he feels a hand curl around his arm, gripping tightly and pulling him up out of the water and onto a hard, sturdy surface. A sweet voice echoes out, but he can barely hear it. 

He fights to open his eyes, finding only a whirl of bright colors swirling in his sight, making his head ache. He groans painfully, starting to heave. He feels his savior turn him over on his side and murmur to him as he throws up, all of the water he swallowed forcing its way out of him as his body shakes violently. 

“You’re okay,” the voice says, low and comforting and gentle. “It’s okay, you’re safe, you’re going to be just fine.”

He makes a move to shift, but she presses a hand to his bare chest, stilling him. 

“Don’t move, give yourself a chance to come back to yourself. You’re okay.” 

He obeys. The sun is still too bright to open his eyes, so he just tries to lie still for a moment and catch his breath. His rescuer gently pushes his soaked hair out of his face before she rubs his shoulder, and absurdly, he weakly places his hand over hers, drawn to her comfort like a moth to flame. Without hesitation, she lets him interlock their fingers before calling out to someone in the distance.

Jake tries to focus on the feeling of her fingers against his instead of the tremors wracking his body. He hears her tell him something about shock, but he has a hard time understanding between trying to catch his breath while also coming to terms with the idea that _he almost fucking drowned_. 

He’s still not able to open his eyes when he hears the gentle thrum of a motor, and then they’re moving. The woman, he realizes she must be a lifeguard, is holding him steady on what must be a rescue board as they advance to shore. The water whips past them gently, such a contrast to the waves that seemed to tug him under only a few minutes ago. 

“You were caught in a rip current,” she says from above him, still holding onto his hand. “If you try to fight those, exhaustion sets in quickly. That’s what had you under, not the waves themselves.” 

“Could’ve fooled me,” he croaks, then hears her chuckle humorlessly as they reach the shore, and he’s hoisted off the board and onto the sand by someone else.

He groans when the bright mid-afternoon sun shines directly on his face again, and even though his eyes aren’t open, it still kind of hurts. He sees swirls of color behind his eyelids, and vaguely, he thinks _maybe_ hallucinogens might look similar. 

There’s a commotion, and when a few people lean over him, blocking the sun, he can finally open his eyes, finding the woman who saved his life studying him intently, suddenly shining a small flashlight into his eyes. 

“Pupils look good,” she comments to another lifeguard, a huge, hulking man who hands her some oxygen. 

She turns to him now, finally meeting his eyes and offering him a gentle smile. 

And _what a smile_ it is. She is absolutely _radiant_ , and if he didn’t know any better he’d think he was looking at an angel, not a lifeguard. Her raven hair shines in the sunlight, and droplets of water cling to her golden skin, making her shine. 

She looks divine.

“Are you sure I didn’t die?” he blurts, and her eyes widen a little before she laughs, quiet and bashful as she holds the oxygen mask up to his face. 

“Pretty sure you didn’t die,” she says nonchalantly, a more easygoing grin playing at her lips. “I wasn’t about to let that happen.”

Jake’s quiet for a moment before lightly gripping her wrist that’s holding up the oxygen mask. 

“Thank you,” he says, simply, quietly. He can’t begin to articulately convey his gratitude. It crashes into him that he’d be _dead_ right now if it wasn’t for her, and he swallows the quickly-growing lump in his throat to muster up a small smile at her. 

“You’re welcome,” she answers, her tone matching his, returning his grin with a little one of her own. It’s completely genuine, and relief is shining in her eyes, too. 

“Jake!” 

He turns sharply to the side, his head spinning at the sudden movement, but he makes out Rosa and Gina rushing toward him, their faces a perfect blend of relief, anger, and sheer incredulity. 

“You moron,” Rosa growls, smacking him none-too-gently on the arm as soon as she’s close enough. 

“Ow! What the hell, Rosa? I almost drowned!” he says, grimacing.

“You _deserve_ it. I can’t believe you almost died over something so idiotic,” she hisses, but then she reaches out to touch him, squeezing his shoulder. It’s an especially rare sight.

From beside her, Gina _tsks_. 

“ _Clearly,_ you haven’t known him as long as I have, then. Remember when you jumped off the roof into the neighbor’s pool and broke your arm, Jake? Or when you ran into oncoming traffic to chase a trading card you dropped? Or when-”

“I get it, Gina,” he says, snipping a little bit as he shoots her a look from where he’s stretched out on the ground. 

Truthfully, he remembers it _all_ a little too vividly, and he’s embarrassed to be adding this to the list of stupid things he’s done in the past. 

His lifeguard watches the exchange with interest, her eyes darting back and forth between him, Rosa, and Gina. 

“Forgive me, but can I ask what happened that had you that far out in the water? I thought you fell off the pier,” she says. 

“I _wish_ he’d fallen instead,” Rosa mutters. 

“He dropped his phone off the pier and decided to go diving for it. Truly, a galaxy brain move,” Gina says, not looking up from where she’s smirking down at her phone, probably live tweeting the event to her followers. 

The lifeguard turns to him quickly, fixing him with a stern look. 

“There are signs on the pier that _explicitly_ say to not dive off of it! Why would you do that? Rules exist for a reason!” she says seriously. 

“Rules are made to be broken,” he shoots back without thinking, an automatic response. 

“And yet, look where that way of thinking got you,” Rosa says dryly. 

Gina snorts. “You need some self preservation. Get a girlfriend. Or a boyfriend. Or a partner. Then we’ll see how often you run off to do stupid shit.” 

Jake’s about to open his mouth to retort when he hears the sirens, an ambulance blazing in from around a bend. It’s only then he realizes the scene he’s caused; beachgoers surround them, most of them holding up their phones to record, much like Gina. The crowd parts like the Red Sea as it draws near, and his lifeguard springs up to go talk to the paramedics. 

With dizzying efficiency, a group of them descend on him, backboard him, and roll him onto the ambulance while they take his vitals and give him a new oxygen mask. 

Before he knows it, the door is closing before he even gets a chance to say goodbye to his hero. 

~~~

A week later, he stands outside the lifeguard post by the dock, clutching a small bouquet of peach roses. 

His lifeguard’s not there; he’s been pacing outside for almost an hour and has yet to see her. He’s so worried about her not being here that he doesn’t even notice the lifeguard who _is_ there approaching. 

“You okay, man?” 

He yelps in surprise, turning around to see the same huge man who helped pull him out of the water last week. 

“Yeah, yeah. I’m just, uh, waiting for someone,” Jake says, lifting a hand to scratch the back of his neck.

“I figured,” the man replies, his eyes flitting down to the bouquet before a knowing smirk forms on his face. “She’s out on the dock giving some safety lessons to children right now. She’ll be back any minute.”

“Oh,” Jake says plainly, feeling his cheeks heat up at his apparent obviousness. “Thank you…”

“Terry,” the man says, clapping him on the back with a grin. “I’m Terry.”

Terry winks at him before walking back inside to his post, and Jake’s left alone again, exhaling deeply as he stares out into the ocean. 

He waits only a few more minutes before he hears footsteps approaching from the opposite direction, and he spins around, his breath catching when he sees her again, donning a white sundress instead of a lifeguard’s uniform. 

Her eyes widen when she sees him, but then her lips turn up in a big smile. 

“Hi,” she says, drawing nearer, and _god_ , she has to be the prettiest thing he’s ever seen. 

“Hi,” he repeats, his stomach suddenly in knots. 

“What are you doing here?” she asks, tilting her head a little in curiosity. 

Jake clears his throat, gesturing back to the ocean. 

“Well, the sea may have defeated me once, but it won’t again. I had to come back and finish the job and get my phone, you know.” 

Her jaw drops comically as her brows furrow angrily, and he can’t help but cackle at her adorable affrontedness. 

“That’s not _funny_ !” she insists, but his laughter doesn’t let up. A few moments later, she joins in too, clutching her stomach as she doubles over with him, and honestly, if it took a near-death experience to meet her, it’s _worth it_. 

Once their laughter dies down, he clears his throat, nerves coming back in full force. 

“I’m, uh, actually here because I wanted to see you,” he says, his voice softening. “And give you these. Rosa told me they symbolize gratitude.”

He holds out the flowers, and she takes them carefully, smiling broadly as she admires them before resting her gaze on him. 

“I couldn’t stop thinking about you,” he continues, deciding he needs to go all-in on this. “So I had to come back.”

His grin widens when he sees the hint of a flush on her cheeks. 

“I couldn’t stop thinking about you either. I couldn’t get your information from the hospital, so I kept making excuses to go out to the dock in case you came back. I’m so glad you did.” 

“Me too.” He pauses. “I’m Jake, by the way.”

“Jake,” she says, slow and deliberate, like she’s testing out the name. He’s already addicted to the sound of her voice saying it. 

“I’m Amy,” she continues, taking another small step closer to him, into his personal bubble. He doesn’t mind one bit. 

“It’s nice to meet you, Amy,” he says, his cheeks stinging from his smile. 

“It’s nice to meet you, too, Jake.”

Then, she leans forward, giving him a quick kiss on the cheek as his eyes widen, his skin blazing at her touch. 

Amy pulls back, giggling a little at his expression until he gathers himself. 

“Would you happen to be free for dinner right now?” he asks, hopeful. 

“Hmmm,” Amy says, clearly pretending to mull it over before she smiles at him. “I think I could make some room in my schedule for you.” 

She weaves her arm through his as they leave the beach, taking their time to revel in the gorgeous sunset reflecting out across the water. 

He doesn’t know it yet, but they’ll share a million more. 

**Author's Note:**

> Okay. I have a bit of a piece to tell here. 
> 
> A little over a year ago, right around when the 2019 fic exchange was happening, Erica posted an ask from a new member of the B99 tumblr fandom asking if she knew any betas. Erica replied that she didn't, but opened the floor up and urged her followers to reach out to this user if they were willing to beta for them. I ended up doing so, and that user ended up being @vernonfielding/Fielding. Those of you who read my fics/follow me on tumblr may recognize her as my beta, but she is also one of my BEST friends. I love her very, very much, and we've talked almost every day since that first meeting between us. She's made me a better writer, helped me through some really difficult moments over the past year, and has just been a tremendous rock of support throughout our friendship. I really don't know if we would've met if it weren't for Erica posting that ask. I've always held a great amount of gratitude in my heart towards her for that. I've always wanted to reach out to her about her unexpected matchmaking, so when I was assigned to write for her this year, it felt especially serendipitous.  
> So Erica, thank you so much for introducing me to one of my favorite people, even if it was unknowing on your part. And just generally, thank you for being such a wonderful member of this fandom over the years. You rock. <3 
> 
> Special thanks to the aforementioned @vernonfielding for beta reading this on short notice. You're the best and I don't deserve you. 
> 
> Thanks so much to the B99fandomevents team for organizing this exchange, too! It's always a blast. :) 
> 
> You can find me on tumblr at @fezzle. Feedback is my lifeblood.


End file.
